British pointers heading to Doncaster Sales

Goffs UK’s delayed Spring Sale of stores, horses in training and point-to-pointers gets underway at Doncaster next month under the name of the Summer Sale.

Tattersalls staged a one-day sale of breeze-up two-year-olds in Newmarket yesterday when the limited number of people in attendance had to follow guidelines in accordance with Coronavirus measures to prevent spread of the disease. Similar regulations will apply when Goffs and Arqana stage a breeze sale at Doncaster on July 1.

Catalogues for the Summer Sale, which takes place on July 28 and 29, began arriving on doormats yesterday and revealed a small group of British point-to-pointers who will be taking their turn under the auctioneer’s hammer.

Six-year-old Huntsmans Jog (Lot 312), who is pictured above, created a good impression when winning twice at Ampton last season for Don Cantillon’s Newmarket stable. Liam Harrison rode the son of Milan, initially on his first pointing start at Cottenham in late December when he was sent off favourite for a maiden race, although a final-fence unseat when looking held cost his backers on that occasion.

The money was back in their pockets when he won at Ampton two weeks later before he scored again at the course when going up into intermediate company. On the latter occasion he beat the Tom Ellis-trained Benefaktor who had won his previous two races. Huntsmans Jog, a half-brother to a Listed winner over hurdles, was also placed in bumpers and over hurdles for Cantillon before switching to the point-to-point field.

Two winners at Dalton Park in March are entered for the sale. The Will Easterby-trained and ridden Ask The Question (Lot 323), a son of Ask, won the card’s open maiden over three miles, while Storm Tiger (Lot 324) had earlier won a maiden over two and three-quarter miles for Tom Ellis’s stable. Storm Tiger (Shirocco) looked likely to finish second to long-time leader Ballybreeze until that rival fell two out, but it was an encouraging first run by the winner.

Three fillies or mares are entered, including Sandaroc (Lot 297), a four-year-old filly owned and trained in Devon by Gerry Supple and the winner of her only start to date. The daughter of Shirocco landed a point-to-point Flat race at Buckfastleigh on the final day of the season, March 15, before the sport was shut down due to Coronavirus restrictions.

Sandaroc is out of a winning mare and is a half-sister to hurdles winner Barranco Valley.

Lilith
(Lot 335), a daughter of Stowaway, showed promise in two starts at Chaddesley Corbett before landing a maiden for Phil Rowley’s stable at Cothelstone, while seven-year-old Gold Time (Lot 302) was second in an Irish point-to-point before joining licensed trainer Graham McPherson and running in his colours at Cocklebarrow and Larkhill, where she finished fifth and then fourth in restricted races.